A US woman who shot and killed her husband and two adult children before taking her own life is thought to have committed the shocking crime as a result of being ostracised from the religion she was raised in.

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She said claims of cutbacks were wrong, as ASIO had received a $32 million boost in the May budget and its staffing levels had risen by more than 400 since 2007.

The prime minister said Mr Abbott was engaged in the "politics of fearmongering" over asylum seekers.

Ms Gillard raised the fact that a 23-year-old Sydney man had been arrested over terrorism-related offences this week as evidence security forces were seriously at work.

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus told reporters the ASIO headquarters would be opened and occupied in the second half of 2013.

"This building is a very secure, state-of-the-art facility," Mr Dreyfus said.

The budget was also the focus of a coalition joint partyroom meeting, which agreed to a raft of Labor measures including axing the baby bonus, changing private health insurance and raising the Medicare levy.

Mr Abbott told the meeting the coalition reluctantly backed the changes, as there was a "budget emergency" which needed urgent repair.

But while the coalition backed a bill to adjust indexation to pay the private health insurance rebate on premium rises in line with inflation, it will oppose the scrapping the rebate of up to 30 per cent on penalty loadings for policy holders who didn't take out private cover before turning 30.

The coalition also signed off on a new $5000 threshold for the declaration of political donations, down from the current $12,000.

Debating the issue in the caucus, Labor veteran John Faulkner - who argued for a $1000 threshold to improve accountability - said he was "ashamed" at the deal struck with the coalition.